Resource allocation is a key aspect of efficient management of highly used resources such as server-based software packages. As user demand increases, server resources become scarce and may not be adequate to meet user demand. If server resources are inadequate to meet user demand, a business or organization may experience financial or other losses as users are unable to complete important tasks or activities.
When server resources are insufficient to meet the demands of all users, they are typically allocated according to established priorities. Establishing priorities, however, can be difficult for a business or organization. While any business or organization would like to meet the needs of all users, such a goal is impractical or even impossible. At best, the business or organization is likely to be able to meet all the needs of only a small subset of the user population. A more likely scenario is that every user's needs can be met over time but each user may not have the unrestricted access to the server resources that he or she would desire at any time.
To best meet the needs of the server user population, it is important for a business or organization to understand how users use the resources. Unfortunately, many businesses and organizations simply make assumptions about users and their use of the resources. Such assumptions, however, are often partially or even entirely false. Any solution that is developed, therefore, relies on the false assumptions. As a result, they are often simplistic and unsatisfactory.
Rather than rely on assumptions, a better approach is to collect usage data. One way to learn how resources are used is to survey users regarding their use. Such an approach however, requires not only appropriately drafted questions but also complete and accurate answers to the questions from the users. Users may try to answer the questions completely and accurately but may over- or under-estimate their usage. User perceptions may be as inaccurate as assumptions.
Even if user-reported usage data may be collected, it may be difficult for the business or organization to understand the data and more importantly, how to allocate resources based on the data. Certain groups of users may have similar needs that can be satisfied with an appropriate resource allocation strategy but it may be difficult for the business or organization to discern the groups from the data. Even if the groups can be discerned, the business or organization must decide how to allocate resources to the groups. In an attempt to satisfy at least a portion of users in each group, businesses and organizations typically consider the needs of each group without consideration of the businesses' or organizations' needs. There is a need for a user categorization system and method that can facilitate the identification of user groups based on actual server usage data.